Even though George RR Martin's "Game of Thrones" books are peppered with the phrase "winter is coming", it really is coming here in Minnesota. The temps will drop quite a bit tomorrow and we should see some snow here in the Twin Cities by the weekend.

That gives my DH a couple of days to get the rest of the leaves taken care of and I'll have to rake and do some quick siding repairs to the old house tomorrow, in the cold snap (can you hear me say - very sarcastically - "Oh, Joy")?

I've been busy on the writing front, but have to get back to my repairs (I promised them by Thanksgiving and I need the money I'll get for doing them) and my Solstice cards. I never worry too much about personal deadlines, but those that are set from outside do tend to be important for me - one way or another. One of the things that I've been busy with has been my Game of Thrones challenge board. A friend of mine was a member and I liked what she was coming up with, so I joined also. One of the latest was to do two cards from the Major Arcana of Tarot cards, featuring characters from the books/show. I did Melisandre as the High Priestess (above) but then decided to make a rather unusual card for The Lovers. Since almost every couple in the books ends up with one or both of them dead, I took Jean-Marc Laroches "The Lovers" as the pic, added a poem below, and voila! I share both cards with you on this cold day that is the beginning of Winter.